Green Bay Packers: Game plan contributes to offense's shortcomings

Green Bay's Aaron Rodgers (12) reacts during the second half of the Packers' loss to the New York Giants on Sunday, Nov. 25, 2012, in East Rutherford, N.J. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- Bad game plan, bad performance, bad result.

There, in a nutshell, was the offense's night in the Green Bay Packers' outrageously one-sided rematch with the New York Giants on Sunday, Nov. 25, at Met Life Stadium.

The 38-10 kick in the teeth the Packers suffered was nothing short of an embarrassment for coach Mike McCarthy and his offensive staff, the architects of what until Sunday night was considered one of the better offenses in the NFL.

Not only did they not have an answer for what the Giants threw at them in the first half, they showed no ability to adjust in the second half and make the game halfway competitive. They knew there was a chance the Giants' front four would have their way with the offensive line, but they had no idea how to counteract them.

"There's plenty of answers," a subdued quarterback Aaron Rodgers said after running an ineffective offense most of the night. "We just didn't make any of those answers work. We tried to do things; we just didn't execute them. We put ourselves in some difficult situations."

McCarthy admitted he called a bad game, but what hurt the most was the terrible game plan he came up with against a defense he was facing for the third time in 12 months.

"We had a plan and we didn't execute it very well," McCarthy said. "We got away from it and went to some spread things. That wasn't the answer. That was quite poor play selection on my part.

"But they did a hell of a job tonight. They were dynamic. Very talented. Very productive.

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With the exception of a handful of plays -- one a 61-yard touchdown to receiver Jordy Nelson -- the Packers saw a Cover-2 defense that took away their perimeter offense and limited them to a few completions to slot receiver Randall Cobb and tight end Jermichael Finley.

Receiver James Jones, the team's leader in receiving touchdowns, did not have one pass thrown his way the entire night. Nelson had four thrown his way and caught two for 71 yards.

The Giants banked on stopping the run and creating pass rush with their front four and dropping seven into coverage, including both safeties splitting the field and making it difficult to complete anything on the sidelines. To beat that defense, the quarterback needs time for his receivers to find holes in the defense, and Rodgers had none of that.

"They played Cover-2," Jones said. "They started out single-high and Jordy beat them for that long one. After that they played Cover-2 and had someone over the top and someone outside. That's it."

McCarthy knew coming into the game that there was a good chance the Giants would rely on their front four and play a heavy dose of Cover-2, similar to what a host of other teams have done to the Packers, including last week's opponent, the Detroit Lions. He had no answers and was never able to even slow down the rush that kept flushing Rodgers out of the pocket.

"I think we were able to put some pressure on the quarterback," Giants coach Tom Coughlin said. "That was something we felt we absolutely had to do with someone with the talent of Aaron Rodgers and having the type of year that he's having.

"To be able to have him throw the ball on our timing rather than his, we were glad to see that."

Traditionally, a team needs to run the ball against a Cover-2 or find the holes between the safeties, but the Packers had trouble doing either. When they showed they weren't going to run the ball, the Giants stopped biting on play-action and sank their linebackers deep, making it hard to throw down the middle.

"You've got to work the middle of the field," said Finley, who had three catches for 51 yards. "If you make plays there, they'll get out of it."

Sometimes a quarterback can negate the rush by getting rid of the ball quickly and completing short passes, but with McCarthy spreading out his receivers and trying to get something down the field, Rodgers didn't do it. Rodgers didn't do himself any favors by not making some of the easy throws, but McCarthy didn't adjust the offense to help him do it.

"I feel when your team performs that way, it starts with the head coach," McCarthy said.

Rodgers completed 14 of 25 passes for 219 yards and a touchdown with one interception. He connected with Nelson on a double-move for the 61-yard touchdown on the Packers' first possession, then did almost nothing the rest of the night, including giving up on throwing a Hail Mary at the end of the first half and tossing the ball out of bounds.

It was the fourth consecutive game in which he has thrown for fewer than 300 yards and the third straight in which he has thrown an interception.

McCarthy came out running the ball but gave up on it after he fell behind, 17-7. He also did not use the no-huddle offense until late in the game and barely even considered using any part of his screen game against the Giants' fierce rush.

Once the Giants got ahead, their front four went hard after Rodgers. The receivers had to find windows open in the zone defense the Giants were playing, but with the pass rush getting on top of Rodgers in a hurry, they rarely had time.

"They made it hard on us," Cobb said of the receivers. "He had to get the ball out. By the time we would look back, he'd be scrambling. They made it tough. They have a great defense."

Jones said that there was no sense in complaining about not getting the ball or blaming one part of the offense. He said it was bad all the way around.

"We're not going to point the finger at one thing," Jones said. "It's not one person's fault. Everybody is in this together. They made more plays, they played harder and they came out with the win."